Baseball fans were treated to a rollercoaster of emotions on Saturday night as the Los Angeles Dodgers edged the Toronto Blue Jays 5-4 in a breathtaking Game 7 at Rogers Centre.
With the score tied at 4-4 after nine innings, the Dodgers’ resilience and clutch hitting propelled them to their third World Series title in five years.
Will Smith Delivers the Ultimate Hero Moment
The night’s hero was undoubtedly Will Smith, who stepped up in the bottom of the 11th and smashed a dramatic home run off Shane Bieber into the Blue Jays bullpen.
The ball sent Dodgers fans and teammates into delirium, while 39,000 Toronto supporters could only watch in stunned silence.
Smith’s homer gave Los Angeles their first lead of the night and ultimately sealed the championship.
Miguel Rojas and Yoshinobu Yamamoto Shine
Before Smith’s historic blast, Miguel Rojas had already kept the Dodgers alive with a crucial home run earlier in extra innings, energizing the team and shifting momentum.
Pitching heroics from World Series MVP Yoshinobu Yamamoto also played a huge role.
Yamamoto, who had thrown 96 pitches in Friday’s win, returned to face three high-pressure innings in Game 7.
He escaped a bases-loaded jam in the ninth, allowing the Dodgers to hang on until Smith’s walk-off moment.
A See-Saw Battle From the Start
The match had drama from the very beginning. Toronto’s Bo Bichette put the Blue Jays ahead in the third inning with a towering three-run homer off Shohei Ohtani, who had pitched on just three days’ rest.
Los Angeles clawed back with sacrifice flies from Teoscar Hernandez in the fourth and Tommy Edman in the sixth, while Andres Gimenez restored Toronto’s two-run advantage later in the sixth.
Max Muncy’s eighth-inning homer off rookie Trey Yesavage cut the Dodgers’ deficit to a single run, setting the stage for Rojas and ultimately Smith to deliver the final blows.
Defensive Plays Keep the Game Alive
The tension wasn’t just at the plate. Dodgers players turned in several game-saving defensive plays, including a spectacular backhanded catch by Andy Pages crashing into teammate Kike Hernández in center field.
Rojas also showed incredible presence of mind on a crucial play at home plate, keeping Toronto from scoring in a bases-loaded jam.
These efforts set the stage for the decisive 11th-inning homer.
Dodgers Make History
The Dodgers’ win cements their place in baseball history.
They are the first team since the late 1990s Yankees to repeat as champions and the first National League team to win back-to-back titles since the Cincinnati Reds in 1975 and 1976.
A parade in Los Angeles is already being planned to celebrate this remarkable achievement.
“This is unforgettable,” said Smith post-game. “To hit that home run and help our team win the Series… it’s a dream come true.”
What This Means for the Teams
For the Dodgers, this victory reinforces their dominance over the past five years.
For the Blue Jays, it’s heartbreak after a courageous campaign that took them to the brink of their first World Series title since 1993.
Baseball fans across North America will be talking about this Game 7 for years to come, a contest that will be remembered for clutch hitting, incredible pitching, and unforgettable defensive plays.